Lord Shadow

‘Then who should I fight?’ Azief ask. This time he is calmer. And his eyes have certain kind of glow in it.

Erika nodded, satisfied with Azief answer

‘Now, you are understanding’ she said. Then she pointed toward Azief. Azief look at that finger. Is she pointing at something else? is his first thought

But then it dawned on him

It was then that Azief understood. 

And understanding it, he laughs. His laugh reverberates across the forest; the Stonehenge nearby seems to be enveloped in a terrifying pressure that comes from Azief laugh.

Azief laugh because he understands who he should fight.

‘My enemy is myself’ he said and Erika nodded and said

‘All of those who came before me lost against their fate and destiny because they all were wrong. The reason why is because they fought the wrong enemy. Instead of fighting against themselves, they fight against fate and destiny’

Once again, smiling with that eerie smile, she said 

‘Change yourself. Then your fate and destiny would also change.’

Azief got closer to his understanding of cause and effect with his meeting with Oracle. 

But even if he knows his enemy is himself, what things should he change? He knew the end result. But he did not know how he get there.

It is like he knows where the end goals are. But he doesn’t even know why he got there. And he did not know where is the road leading to that end. Did he choose a shortcut? 

Did he enter a secret path and reach there? If his life is a story written into a book, then what he saw was one the few last chapter of the book.

He had read the prologue and he had read the few last chapter of the book. 

But what happens in between? That is what he doesn’t know. How could he change the future if he doesn’t know what kind of choice that he had make that leads to that future?

Right now, as Azief keep thinking Erika is looking at him intently.

Erika could see the confusion on Azief face. 

She sighed internally. Unfortunately, that battle will happen. That is something that Azief could not change. Loki knows this. She knows this. And Yewa Hafar also knows this.

But if that is the case why are they still putting chess pieces? 

Simply because in their minds, that even if Azief reach that point, it is still not without hope. Loki and Erika wanted to change the future. Yewa Hafar wanted to keep it the same.

When Loki and Erika took this task, they know that there are certain changes that they could not make. No matter how scheming or how powerful they are, there is one event that they could not change

“But, not all’ she muttered inaudibly.

Then Azief asks

‘Then how would I know whether I choose wrong or right?’

‘Who said you were wrong?’ she said and for a moment, Azief frowned. Then he replied

‘I see the future. I saw myself fighting the whole world. I saw people I knew, people I loved wanting to kill me. I don’t know what I did wrong. But for the whole world to be targeting me, there must be something wrong that I did, that make the whole world wanting to kill me’

Erika smiles bitterly and then she said

‘As the Speedster would attest, never believe to much in what you see. Especially if it is related to Time matters and Time magic. Not everything is as it seems’

Azief seem to guess at something. He then asks

‘You are saying that I fight against the world because the world is wrong?’

‘I’m saying that you still don’t know why you would fight them. But at least you know you will fight them. And since you know that, maybe you could slowly figure it out.’

Silence once again reigned between them. This time it is longer than before. She then said

‘I guess this is it. Unless you have more things you wanted to see’ Azief nodded and then he said

‘What about the Price?’ Azief ask. 

‘I’ll ask it when you return with Will.’ She said casually

Azief then asked.

‘I heard you tell prophecy’

She nodded

‘What is mine?’

Smiling she replied

‘Also, after’ 

Azief narrowed his eyes.

‘You seem to know what we are planning’ Erika smile nonchalantly and said

‘I am the oracle. It is my job to know what will happen next. I would really bad at my job if I couldn’t see what you are doing next’ And she chuckles a bit.

‘What if I don’t come to pay the Price after I am finished with my matter?’

‘A Price must be paid’ she said solemnly.

‘And who will enforce it? Azief ask. Smiling Erika said

‘Fate and Destiny’ she replies. Silence once again reigned between them. 

Azief nodded and he once again look at the eye of the Oracle. He felt shivers looking at that eye. Unconsciously he touched the area under his left eye and sighed.

Erika saw what Azief had done and she only smiles mysteriously. Erika is confident that Azief had a premonition of what will happen between them.

‘I will come back.’ He said

‘I will be waiting’ she replies. Azief then turned around and walk to Will. Will could see that Azief is done.

Sighing, he asks Azief

‘We’re going?’

Azief nodded and reply

‘We’re going’ Smiling Will nodded

‘Good. This place gives me the creep’ Azief only chuckles. 

And then Azief ask

‘Where is a suitable place for you to initiate it?’ he asks Will

‘Andes Plain’

Azief nodded and put his hand on top of Will shoulder. He stops for a second, look around the area and then said to the Oracle

‘Better be careful. The formation has dissipated. They are a lot of people that wanted to know where you are’

The Oracle just nodded with a smile on her face. Azief snorted. Then a powerful aura comes out of him. Laws of the world seems to respond to the energy coming out from Azief body.

The land beneath his feet wrinkled and the air become compressed by a powerful force.

The space distorts and they disappeared from the area.

Erika look at this and sighed. The moment passed as the tree behind her began to wither even more. Then it crack

Erika look at the tree and then chuckling, she said

‘Even you are not eternal. Thank you for all the help’ she said as she rubs the tree. The fruits of this tree is imbued with Time Essence. 

It helps her a bit in combating the lifespan reduction and the effect of her going and peering through the Veil of Fate and Destiny.

Before Azief had come to her, she already plucks all the fruits. If the jade Empire have the Peaches of immortality to supply the Immortals living in the Jade Palace, then for Oracles like her, there is a need to eat a fruit from the Tree of Time.

The tree cracks even more and then the branches of the tree fall down and the tree fell down with a thud. Only the stump is left.

She sighed.

Then she felt a change in her body. She could not see it but she knows fate and destiny demands a price. Not to mention that she revealed the secrets of fate and destiny.

It is a price. And a punishment

Her face which is full of youth slowly wrinkles like she had been aged almost instantly. She felt energy leaving her body. She could feel something was snipped out of her.

Her lifespan reduced and the vitality of her body seems to be seized by an invisible force.

She plop down to the ground. 

Now, that Azief is gone, her location is no longer a secret. The World government, the Republic and all the other great powers, factions and secret societies will know her location.

But she is not worried that they would find trouble with her. Because she knows that the moment Azief went with Will, there would be a great chaos in the world.

Because Will and Azief is going to the future. And even that have a Price to pay. She could predict that the fabric of reality of the world would be weakened. 

The Barrier between world would be fragile. This is all a recipe for disaster.

‘Things have changed. I look forward looking at that trickster face when he knows of this’ she said and she smirks a bit 

Sighing she then said

‘Now, the Time Crisis has begun’

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